I was speaking recently with Dave Goetz of CZ Strategy, and our conversation turned to challenges facing nonprofit organizations. When he asked what I thought was the biggest challenge fundraisers had to deal with, I didn’t answer with the usual suspects...
The words you use on your donation page are powerful. And there’s a danger in assuming your donor understands why they should give to you just because they land on your donation page. By adding copy to your page, you can articulate those reasons clearly and increase your donations...
I (Katrina) have had several 10,000-hour thresholds in my career. I started my company, Turnkey, in 1989, so my first 10,000 hours happened around 2007 or so. By that time, while certainly not having achieved genius-level competence...
We are huge proponents of video—carefully planned video with a clear objective. In most campaigns that are focused on major gifts, we are not big fans of a fundraising video, unless there is a reason that prospective donors can’t see impact of the client’s work firsthand...
In the nonprofit sector, we wear a lot of hats. We all do it anyway because we care about the mission. We are a passionate bunch. But let’s face it, despite our passion, we all need to get a lot accomplished with a limited budget and limited time to do so. We also need to recognize that cross-team collaboration is vital to fulfilling the mission. Enter growth hacking for nonprofits...
To achieve victory, a capital campaign must be won on paper before launched on the streets. Hiring fundraising counsel to conduct a campaign feasibility study is a proven and prudent way to ensure campaign success...
I once worked with a major gift officer, Janet (not her real name) who was so grounded as a person, nothing seemed to rattle her. Janet was incredibly gifted at developing relationships, staying focused and doing all the “little things” right...
Fundraising challenges are part of the package for nonprofit marketers: Attrition, converting small donors into major gift donors, growing the donor base and not to mention factors beyond our control that affect giving trends...
It is true that people give to people. If you are interested in a long and satisfying career in fundraising, get out of the office and engage others. You will be amazed at what you’ll learn about others and yourself...
You run a mid-sized nonprofit. Suddenly, a funding source comes through big-time with the technology grant you’ve been waiting for. Time to pop the champagne? Not so fast. Technology funding windfalls can cause disorder and disarray at nonprofit organizations...
